A Realization
by datawolf39
Summary: Bella shows Edward she can act and bonds with Esme and Carlisle in the process. K plus for no reason.


**A/n One of my favorite things is Bella and Carlisle father/daughter fics. This was one I have had on my CPU for a while and I thought I would upload it. Not too satisfied with the way that I ended this, I think the story turned out well overall. This is simply fluff with a little bit of hurt. I imagine this being set sometime around Eclipse, but its not that specific. Changes POV at the separation.**

 **Anyway, R and R and Enjoy.**

* * *

"Edward, don't you dare!" I growled. Judging by the way that he was looking at me, I knew that I looked about as threatening as a newborn kitten.

"Bella," he said in that unfairly seductive, velvet tone, he often used to get his way. Stupid manipulative vampire.

"Edward," I growled again.

Despite my protest, Edward laughed and pulled the book from my hands. It was an old one, from Carlisle's collection, and being that Edward was so much stronger than I was, and that I didn't want the book to be destroyed, I was forced to let it go.

I knew that he would give it back eventually, but I had been in the middle of a good poem and I was upset that he had taken away my book. My angel smiled at me innocently, as though he hadn't just pettily resorted to forcing my attention from the book to him. Well, if he was going to use his vampire abilities against me, it was only fair that I use the tools at my disposal.

With a grin, that made Edward's eyes flash with fear, I took my hair out of its ponytail and let it fall over my face. Then I walked to the door and opened it. "Carlisle," I called quietly knowing that he would hear me since he told me that he would be here for most of the evening. He was in front of me less than 20 seconds after I called for him and Esme had followed, no doubt hearing the call as well. I quickly amended my plan.

Looking up at Carlisle, I pulled my hair away from my face with one hand. Some sad thoughts allowed my eyes to tear up slightly and I was ready. "Daddy, Edward's being mean to me!" I cried half-startled by how childish I had managed to make myself sound.

Esme tenderly wrapped me in her arms. "What did he do?" she asked gently. I could tell she was playing along with me and I wondered what she was thinking, because I didn't hear Edward call her on it.

"Mama he took my book away!" I cried holding on to her. "It wasn't hurting him or anything and he took it from me and wouldn't give it back." I said with a sniffle.

Carlisle startled me by picking me up as though I was a little kid. His arm was wrapped securely around my waist and my body pressed against his hip. I was held so that my head was almost at the same height as his. I adapted quickly to the change though, and rested my head on his shoulder and put my arms around his neck.

Carlisle retrieved my book from his son and gave Edward a stern glare. "You are grounded young man," he said. I struggled not to laugh at his phrasing."Treating such a sweet girl so meanly," The older vampire said with a sigh. The shocked look on Edward's face was priceless. Well that would teach him that I could act well when I wanted too.

I expected Carlisle to put me down after that, but he just began walking away, at a human pace no less, with me in his arms. I think I startled him when my tears became more intense than my memory induced crocodile tears while we made our way downstairs. I tried to rein in my emotions though. I just felt so happy in that moment because, although, this started as just a way to get back at Edward I was really happy to be held like this since I had never been held like this before by either of my parents, not that I could remember anyway.

"What's the matter?" Carlisle asked in a concerned tone. "Did I hold you too tightly?" he asked checking for any marks that he may have left on my fragile human skin.

I pulled back the smallest bit and shook my head wildly. The fact that he was so worried made me smile and hold on to him even tighter.

"Bella, sweetie, what's wrong?" Esme asked, just as concerned as Carlisle. That kindness fueled yet more tears. When was it, that I had become so close to Carlisle and Esme, that they were practically a second set of parents? When had it happened, that they had begun to regard me as one of their children?

I closed my eyes and turned my head so that my face was completely against the cold skin of Carlisle's neck. I was sobbing now, unable to contain myself. I knew that they were worried about me because they couldn't know that I was crying from the happiness of realizing what I just had. Where in the world was Jasper when you needed him?

I was so happy that I had been given this extraordinary family. Renee and Charlie were and always would be my parents and I loved them. But for Renee I had always taken the role of parent and with Charlie, there was little to no direct affection. I didn't begrudge him that because that was simply the way that we were with one another. Esme and Carlisle were different though. They were openly affectionate and tactile with me. They took care of me if I let them.

That wasn't all of it either. In Edward I had found my soulmate, in Alice I had found a sister, in Emmett I had a brother that would always be there for me. Although, Rose was standoffish at times, I knew that she would help me if I asked her to. She was kind of like a cousin, but I hoped that with time, we would be able to become closer to each other. Jasper was like a brother too when he actually spoke to me. I would have to find a way to show him that I cared about him soon before he felt that he needed to avoid me forever.

This was and had been my family for so long. Somehow, though, I had managed to overlook that and had just come to realize how much they all mattered to me.

* * *

I gave a worried look to my wife as she continued to stroke Bella's hair, trying to calm our youngest daughter. I noticed immediately when my son dashed down the stairs and assured him with a thought that Bella was not hurt, at least not physically.

After several minutes of sobbing, Bella began to quiet down and I realized that she had fallen asleep. I didn't want to wake her, so I sat on the sofa and moved her so that her head was on my chest with a pillow between her head and my body. Then I took a blanket that was on the sofa and gently wrapped her in it so that she would not get too cold being beside me.

"She's been having nightmares," my son said in answer to my thought. The guilt rolled off him in nearly tangible waves as he gazed at Bella's face. "She says that they mostly happen when I am away, but sometimes she has them on nights when I am with her, she hardly remembers them though, so I don't say anything. I don't know how she can still care about me after all the pain that I put her through," he admitted quietly, his normally calm face screwed up in the vampire approximation of crying.

Esme hugged him and he hesitantly returned the hug. It was as though he felt undeserving of any affection.

I was going to respond, but before I could Bella began to speak. I had almost forgotten that she talked in her sleep.

"Edward," she sighed rubbing her cheek against the pillow. "Stop looking so morbid or I will get you a coffin covered in garlic for your birthday," she threatened.

I was happy for the interruption, it calmed Edward because there was no way that we couldn't laugh at that.

It was a while before she spoke again. "But his eyes... they're too dark," Bella whispered. "My fault? Edward is going to kill me!? She wailed in despair.

I decided that I should wake her before her nightmare got any more vivid. "Bella, honey, time to get up," I said shaking her a little.

When her brown eyes opened, she looked directly into my eyes. After studying them, she sighed. "Oh good it was just a dream."

"What did you dream about?" I asked cautiously, wondering why looking at me so intently had calmed her so quickly. Had I done something that had given her nightmares? Was I somehow featured in her dreams, in a negative light, due to my proximity?

To my surprise she blushed. "I don't want to say," she said not looking at me anymore.

Edward looked at me with a sly smile. Once he gained her attention, he smiled at her and I could hear her heart begin to thump wildly and I felt her literally stop breathing for several moments.

"Please tell me Bella," Edward said sounding overly sweet in tone. Bella's heart thumped faster and she finally spoke again, in a tone that was completely dazed. I had to wonder if my son had somehow hypnotized her. "You were going to kill me because Carlisle spent six months under a mountain of paperwork."

I wanted to laugh, but she wasn't done speaking yet. "Later found out was my complete medical history. He hadn't hunted in so long that his eyes turned completely black and he was feeding on a squirrel when we found him. Then Emmett appeared and said Carlisle always was nutty."

I pressed my lips into a hard line as I gently placed Bella in Edward's arms Once she was out of harms way all of my willpower seemed to just evaporate and I burst out laughing. I couldn't help myself, the imagery was just to much for me.

"Is he going to be alright?" I heard Bella ask.

"I don't know, I've never seen him this way before," Edward answered clearly amused by my current state.

I tried desperately to compose myself, but every time that I got close I would remember what Bella had said and I would continue to laugh. It didn't help matters that I had once actually fed on a squirrel and it was terrible. The taste was so horrible that I had spit out the blood and licked a tree because anything was better than the blood of a squirrel. I was scared that I would laugh forever, due to the fact that I didn't need to breathe, and then suddenly, Esme was there kissing me and my mirth was exchanged for passion. Even after all these years, a kiss like that could send me into a passionate frenzy and she knew it.

When she pulled away, it took me a moment to remember where I was. I glanced quickly at my son and my daughter. If anything they seemed amused by my loss of composure. That's it, I decided, they were both grounded forever.


End file.
